Villarreal keeps alive the dream of qualifying for a European competition after clearly beating Rayo Vallecano in an offensive display by its striker Alexander Sorloth, who scored two goals and saw the referee disallow two others.
The Castellón team was far superior to Rayo Vallecano, who barely gave the impression of being able to compete in the match for a short period of time in the early stages of the second half.
The Madrid team had a great scene, as they took control of the ball and with a brave and offensive approach, they locked Villarreal in their field during the first minutes.
Marcelino’s team, surprised by the aggressive approach of their rival, took a while to settle into the match, although they had the first chance in a shot by Guedes, after a pass from Ilias Akhomach.
Villarreal tamed Rayo as the minutes passed. The presence of Guedes infiltrated between the lines and the verticality of Ilias Akhomach were key to dismantling Rayo’s pressure.
In full local improvement, a ball behind the defense sent by Baena was taken advantage of by Sorloth to beat Dimitrievski with a cross shot.
The goal gave Villarreal pause, which at times dismantled its rival, again with its Moroccan winger as a can opener.
Sorloth, fed with balls from all sides, had the second with a new ball into space, but a reckless exit by Dimitrievski prevented it, and with a shot after a rebound from the goalkeeper that the referee annulled due to Akhomach’s previous offside.
Rayo, despite having strengthened the midfield with its approach, struggled to contain its rival’s offensive transitions and barely caused any concern in attack during the first half beyond distant and deflected shots from Isi and Unai López.
Iñigo Pérez’s team advanced after the break to prevent Villarreal from getting the ball out, but the Castellón team, with Parejo in charge of the operations, continued to take the initiative.
Álex Baena, decisive between the lines, was close to the second with a spectacular shot that crashed into the top corner and shortly after Sorloth scored again, although the goal was again disallowed for offside.
El Rayo, increasingly focused, responded with a shot from Camello that went over the crossbar. The action encouraged the Madrid team, which began to grow in the game as Unai López and De Frutos gained presence in the game.
The entry of Nteka and Álvaro García gave energy to Rayo’s attack, while Villarreal began to show fatigue. Despite the change in dynamics, it was once again the local team, again with Baena as assistant, that came close to scoring with a shot by Alberto Moreno that Dimitrievski cleared with reflexes.
After the corner kick, Mosquera, who had completed an outstanding game in defense, rose above the Rayista defense to score Villarreal’s second goal with a header.
Rayo tried to get into the game quickly and Nteka, with a bicycle kick, had the option to score, but Jorgensen caught his shot.
Villarreal took advantage of their rival’s offensive disorder to score after a new assist into Baena’s space that Sorloth passed into the net with a cross shot.
The third goal brought the game down. Marcelino rested some of his starters, such as Sorloth, while Rayo, especially through Nteka, looked until the end for a goal that Jorgensen denied them.
Data sheet
3 Villarreal: Jorgensen; Kiko Femenía, Albiol, Mosquera, Alberto Moreno (Pedraza, min. 72); Ilias Akhomach (Coquelin, min, 72), Comeseña, Parejo (Trigueros, min. 83), Álex Baena, Guedes (Terrats, min. 83) and Sorloth (Morales, min. 83).
0 Rayo Vallecano: Dimitrievski; Ratiu, Munim, Lejeune, Pep Chavarría; Pathe Ciss (Falcao, min. 80), Crespo (Óscar Valentín, min. 80); Isi Palazón (Trejo, min. 80), Unai López (Álvaro García, min. 63), De Frutos y Camello (Nteka, min. 63).
Goals: 1-0, min. 18: Sorloth. 2-0, min. 69: Mosquera. 3-0, min. 73: Sorloth.
Referee: González Fuertes (Asturian Committee). He showed a yellow card to Coquelin and Albiol for Villarreal and Pathé Ciss for Rayo Vallecano.
Incidents: Match corresponding to matchday 33 of the EASports League played at the La Cerámica stadium in front of 17,869 spectators.
